A Family Portrait: Mission Impossible
A reminder that with God, all things are possible

By Marcia Laycock

The picnic had been great fun, filled with games and races, topped off with a wiener roast on an open fire. As we sat back to relax after the meal, cold drinks and deserts in hand, our contentment was interrupted by the "matriarch" of the family. She bustled around, urging everyone to clean up and clear out. I wondered at her sudden urgency to see everyone leave, but joined the crowd in cleaning up. As everyone headed to their vehicles, we jumped in with the elder woman, for the short drive back to her house. Starting her truck with a sigh and a quick glance at her watch, she turned to us and apologized.

"Sorry to have to rush you, but we have a photographer coming and we have to be ready." I assumed she meant she and her husband and asked if there was a special occasion for the portrait. "Oh, it's not just us," she replied, "All 26 of us have to get changed and ready for the photographer in half an hour and there's only one bathroom in our house!" We laughed as she admitted, "I know, it's 'Mission Impossible'! "

A few months later I saw the portrait taken that day. Remembering the grubby kids and casually dressed adults at the picnic, I was amazed at the photo. Even the youngest looked well groomed. Remembering my friend's comment about 'Mission Impossible,' I smiled and thought, 'Mission Accomplished.'

Sometimes the circumstances of life seem impossible: a debt load too great to handle, relationships too broken to be restored, a history of pain and misery too deep to be healed. But there is hope. As Jesus explained what it would take for a person to enter the kingdom of God, he used a well-known landmark called "the eye of the needle." The "eye" was a low, narrow gate into Jerusalem. It was impossible for a camel to get through it. The disciples were astonished that Jesus would say it was no easier for someone to get into heaven than for a camel to get through that gate.

Their reaction was exactly what Jesus wanted. He wanted them to realize salvation, like the resolution of many circumstances in life, is impossible to accomplish on our own. Matthew 19: 26 says - Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Do you believe you are "too far gone" to be accepted by God? Are there circumstances in your life that seem impossible? Note the words Jesus uses - ALL THINGS. That includes finances, relationships, destroyed families and lost jobs, even a life that seems 'too far gone.' ALL THINGS can be restored by Him. All it takes is a willing heart, a heart willing to submit to His will; a heart, no matter how dark, willing to be restored. The instant that willing heart turns to Him, He shouts, "Mission Accomplished!" Is your heart willing?

 

Marcia Lee Laycock is a free-lance writer who specializes in inspirational writing. Subscribe to Marcia's free column by emailing vinemarc@rttinc.com

Visit Marcia's online home at: www.vinemarc.ab.ca

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